Sam's Town

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

2006 studio album by the Killers

title: "Sam's Town" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2006-albums", "albums-produced-by-alan-moulder", "albums-produced-by-flood-(producer)", "brit-award-for-international-album", "2000s-concept-albums", "island-records-albums", "the-killers-albums", "vertigo-records-albums"] description: "2006 studio album by the Killers" topic_path: "arts/music" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam's_Town" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary 2006 studio album by the Killers ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox album"]

FieldValue
nameSam's Town
typestudio
artistthe Killers
coverThe Killers - Sam's Town.png
altA female model in a bikini stands in front a trailer home wearing a sash with the word "MISS" on it. A ram also appears, looking outward to the left. The words "Sam's Town" are written in red text.
borderyes
released
recordedFebruary–June 2006
studio* Studio at the Palms (Las Vegas)
* indie rock{{cite weburl
length
labelIsland
prev_titleHot Fuss
prev_year2004
next_titleSawdust
next_year2007
misc{{Singles
nameSam's Town
typestudio
single1When You Were Young
single1dateSeptember 18, 2006
single2Bones
single2dateNovember 27, 2006
single3Read My Mind
single3dateFebruary 13, 2007
single4For Reasons Unknown
single4dateJune 25, 2007
::

::callout[type=note] the album by the Killers ::

| name = Sam's Town | type = studio | artist = the Killers | cover = The Killers - Sam's Town.png | alt = A female model in a bikini stands in front a trailer home wearing a sash with the word "MISS" on it. A ram also appears, looking outward to the left. The words "Sam's Town" are written in red text. | border = yes | released = | recorded = February–June 2006 | studio = * Studio at the Palms (Las Vegas)

Sam's Town is the second studio album by American rock band the Killers. It was released on September 27, 2006, by Island Records. Regarding the album, frontman Brandon Flowers noted that he "wanted to create an album that captured, chronologically, everything important that got me to where I am today". Sam's Town has sold almost five million copies worldwide.

On October 7, 2016, Sam's Town was reissued as a remastered double vinyl by Bong Load Records, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the album. The reissue is limited to 5,016 copies and includes two bonus tracks—the previously unreleased demo "Peace of Mind" and a Pet Shop Boys remix of "Read My Mind".

Background

The album takes its name from Sam's Town Hotel and Gambling Hall, a hotel and casino in Las Vegas, the band's hometown. Sam's Town was also a huge sign that was visible to band member Mark Stoermer through his room window when he was young.

Artwork

According to photographer Anton Corbijn, the band initially wanted a "chic, gypsy look" for the album, and that "out of those discussions [for the sleeve] came these elements of faded glory." The album's co-producer, Flood, is dressed as a Native American in the CD booklet. The artwork inside the album booklet is taken from a Downtown Las Vegas mural painted by Suzanne Hackett-Morgan, a local painter. The cover artwork of Sam's Town features model and singer Felice LaZae. It also features a Desert bighorn sheep, the state mammal and popular symbol of Nevada, where the Killers are from.

Production

The album is said to be influenced by the works of U2, Duran Duran, Bruce Springsteen, the Beatles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Electric Light Orchestra, and Dire Straits, among others. In the October 2006 issue of Giant magazine, Flowers was quoted as saying that Sam's Town would be "one of the best albums in the past twenty years", and in Entertainment Weekly he remarked that it would be "the album that keeps rock & roll afloat."

Flowers later said of production techniques used on the record, "We didn't use too many vocal effects. On the first album, we used auto-tune, and I didn't even realize what was going on with these machines and the computer. I was adamant about not using it this time. You really hear what my voice sounds like, for the first time." At one point, Flowers was told that Brian Eno had passed over the chance to produce the album, a rejection that affected Flowers greatly. However, when working with Eno for Wonderful Wonderful, Eno told him that he was never offered the project in the first place.

Tour

Main article: Sam's Town Tour

In support of the album, the Killers embarked on the Sam's Town Tour throughout 2006 and 2007. The tour started in Las Vegas on August 23, 2006 and ended in Melbourne on November 14, 2007. The tour, which was also in support of the band's 2007 compilation album Sawdust, saw the band perform in countries such as Brazil and Argentina for the first time and was described as "a blessing live" by Variety magazine.

Critical reception

| MC = 64/100 | rev1 = AllMusic | rev1Score = | rev2 = The A.V. Club | rev2Score = B− | rev3 = Blender | rev3Score = | rev4 = Entertainment Weekly | rev4Score = C | rev5 = The Guardian | rev5score = | rev6 = NME | rev6Score = 8/10 | rev7 = Pitchfork | rev7Score = 5.9/10 | rev8 = Q | rev8Score = | rev9 = Rolling Stone | rev9Score = | rev10 = Spin | rev10Score =

Initially, Sam's Town received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 64, based on 32 reviews.

Dan Martin of The Observer awarded the album five out of five stars and noted the album's sonic similarity to Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen, writing: "Improbably, this proves to be their masterstroke. Selling Springsteen back to his homeland might look like a canny way of ensuring radio play, but there's no disputing the quality of their songs. Indeed, as Hot Fuss sporadically intimated, the Killers are among pop's foremost practitioners." Comparing Sam's Town to the band's debut album Hot Fuss, Martin stated: "Crucially, Sam's Town sounds like a complete collection, with a far better strike rate than its predecessor."

In a review for NME, Krissi Murison highlighted both the similarities to Hot Fuss and the evolution of the band's sound from the debut to Sam's Town, concluding: "All this, however, isn't to say that The Killers have gone all (God forbid) serious on us. The tunes may be huger, the influences cleverer, the lyrics more adventurous and the band more self-assured, but their primary concern is still being the biggest indie-pop stars on the planet. For all their smart new ways, The Killers are still as flashy, unintentionally funny, and flagrantly affected as ever – and this time we wouldn't even pretend to have it any other way."

Conversely, Sia Michel of The New York Times called the album "painful" and ends the review with the statement that "The Killers are a talented band that evolved too fast, for the wrong reasons." Similarly, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone noted a significant departure from Hot Fuss, writing that on Sam's Town, the band "ditch[es] their cheerfully fake Bowie moves and try to get heavy by copying Bruce Springsteen. Yes, that means glockenspiel solos. Yes, it means anthems about the road and looking for America and girls named Mary. No, it's not a good move."

In later years, the album gained a cult following and has been critically lauded as a classic and one of the best rock albums of the 2000s. Despite its two-star rating by Rolling Stone, Sam's Town was voted by the magazine's readers in December 2009 as the most underrated album of the decade. Q magazine ranked it as the 11th best album of the 21st century. In a retrospective for Uproxx, Steven Hyden broaches the issue of pannings by notable media outlets such as Rolling Stone, arguing that these pannings have ultimately cemented the album's status as a classic: "Ten years removed from its original moment, Sam's Town has aged as all misunderstood sorta-classics do, where its deficiencies are now strengths. [...] A record that was risible to some because its attendant hype was so overbearing now has the appeal of a mistreated underdog. Against all odds, the narrative came around on Sam's Town." Writing for MTV News, James Montgomery would theorize that the initial backlash to the album caused the band to change direction with their follow up album, Day & Age, calling the latter "the most un-Sam's Town album imaginable."

Accolades

::data[format=table title="Awards and nominations for ''Sam's Town''"]

CeremonyYearAwardResultBrit AwardsMTV Australia AwardsShockwaves NME Awards
2007Best International Album
Album of the Year
Best Album
::

::data[format=table title="''Sam's Town'' on critics' lists and readers' polls"]

PublicationCountryAccoladeYearRankQRolling Stone
United KingdomQ Artists and Albums of the 21st Century201011
United StatesMost Underrated Album of the Decade: Readers' Poll20101
::

:

Commercial performance

Sam's Town debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 315,000 copies in its first week. , the album had sold 1.3 million copies in the United States. It became the band's second number-one album on the UK Albums Chart, selling 268,946 copies in its first week. It had sold 1.57 million copies in the United Kingdom by July 2017. The album has been certified Platinum or multi-Platinum in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, and Ireland. Sam's Town also produced multiple charting singles including the platinum chart-topping single "When You Were Young". , Sam's Town had sold almost five million copies worldwide.

In popular culture

Six months after the death of American YouTuber Technoblade, his father revealed on the r/technoblade subreddit that, in his son's instructions for the video that would announce his death, he included a link to a joint YouTube video of the songs "Enterlude" and "Exitlude". Technoblade's father was unsure of how his son wanted the song to be inserted into the video and did not include it due to problems it could cause with copyright.

Popular Twitch streamer xQc has regularly used "Exitlude" as outro music for his streams.

Track listing

All tracks are produced by Flood, Alan Moulder and the Killers.

| title1 = Sam's Town | writer1 = Brandon Flowers | length1 = 4:05 | title2 = Enterlude | length2 = 0:49 | writer2 = Flowers | title3 = When You Were Young | writer3 = | length3 = 3:39 | title4 = Bling (Confession of a King) | writer4 = | length4 = 4:08 | title5 = For Reasons Unknown | writer5 = Flowers | length5 = 3:32 | title6 = Read My Mind | writer6 = | length6 = 4:06 | title7 = Uncle Jonny | writer7 = | length7 = 4:25 | title8 = Bones | writer8 = | length8 = 3:46 | title9 = My List | writer9 = Flowers | length9 = 4:08 | title10 = This River Is Wild | writer10 = | length10 = 4:38 | title11 = Why Do I Keep Counting? | writer11 = Flowers | length11 = 4:23 | title12 = Exitlude | writer12 = Flowers | length12 = 2:24 | headline = Bonus track on UK, Australian and European special editions | title13 = Where the White Boys Dance | note13 = B-side to "When You Were Young" single | writer13 = Flowers | length13 = 3:26

| headline = Bonus tracks on Japanese edition | title13 = Where the White Boys Dance | note13 = B-side to "When You Were Young" single | writer13 = Flowers | length13 = 3:26 | title14 = All the Pretty Faces | note14 = B-side to "When You Were Young" single | writer14 = | length14 = 4:45

| headline = Bonus track on French edition | title13 = When You Were Young | note13 = Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duke) (Radio Edit, from the "When You Were Young" single | writer13 = | length13 = 3:58

| headline = US Best Buy bonus CD | title1 = All the Pretty Faces | note1 = B-side to "When You Were Young" single | writer1 = | length1 = 4:45 | title2 = Daddy's Eyes | note2 = B-side to "Bones" single | writer2 = Flowers | length2 = 4:13

| headline = Bonus tracks on 10th anniversary LP edition | title13 = Peace of Mind | note13 = previously unreleased | length13 = 4:43 | title14 = Read My Mind | note14 = Pet Shop Boys Stars Are Blazing Mix) (from the "Read My Mind" single | length14 = 7:20

| headline = Bonus DVD | title17 = When You Were Young | note17 = video) (Jump Version | title18 = When You Were Young | note18 = video) (No Jump Version | title19 = Making of 'When You Were Young

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Sam's Town.

The Killers

Additional musicians

  • Corlene Byrd – backing vocals on "Why Do I Keep Counting?"
  • Louis XIV – backing vocals on "Sam's Town" and "My List"
  • Tommy Marth – saxophones
  • Neeraj Khajanchi – trombone
  • Adrina Hanson – strings
  • Maryam Haddad – strings
  • Tristan Moyer – strings

Technical

  • Flood – production, recording, mixing
  • Alan Moulder – production, recording, mixing
  • The Killers – production
  • Mark Gray – additional engineering
  • Neeraj Khajanchi – additional engineering
  • Max Dingel – additional engineering
  • Andy Savours – mix engineering
  • Howie Weinberg – mastering

Artwork

  • Andy West – art direction, design
  • Anton Corbijn – photography
  • Kristen Yiengst – photo, art coordination
  • Doug Joswick – package production

Studios

Charts

Weekly charts

::data[format=table title="Weekly chart performance for ''Sam's Town''"] | Chart (2006) | Peak position | European Albums (Billboard) | Greek Albums (IFPI) | Japanese Albums (Oricon) | Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico) | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | 2 | | | | | | | 14 | | | | | | | 24 | | | | | | | 9 | | | | | | ::

Year-end charts

::data[format=table title="2006 year-end chart performance for ''Sams's Town''"]

Chart (2006)PositionAustralian Albums (ARIA)European Albums (Billboard)Greek Foreign Albums (IFPI)Irish Albums (IRMA)Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)UK Albums (OCC)US Billboard 200US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)Worldwide Albums (IFPI)
30
53
45
7
84
18
12
95
17
19
::

::data[format=table title="2007 year-end chart performance for ''Sams's Town''"]

Chart (2007)PositionAustralian Albums (ARIA)European Albums (Billboard)New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)UK Albums (OCC)US Billboard 200US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)
55
52
45
24
80
16
::

::data[format=table title="2008 year-end chart performance for ''Sam's Town''"]

Chart (2008)PositionUK Albums (OCC)
108
::

::data[format=table title="2009 year-end chart performance for ''Sam's Town''"]

Chart (2009)PositionUK Albums (OCC)
174
::

Decade-end charts

::data[format=table title="Decade-end chart performance for ''Sam's Town''"]

Chart (2000–2009)PositionUK Albums (OCC)
70
::

Certifications and sales

Release history

::data[format=table title="Release dates and formats for ''Sam's Town''"]

RegionDateFormatLabelCatalogJapanAustraliaUnited KingdomUnited States
September 27, 2006CDUniversalUICL-9037
September 30, 20061706722
October 2, 2006Lizard King
October 3, 2006Picture disc LPIslandB0007221-01
CDB0007221-02
::

References

References

  1. (April 29, 2009). "Killers Single-Latest". [[Clash (magazine).
  2. Kent, Nick. (October 20, 2006). "The saints of Sin City". [[The Guardian]].
  3. Strauss, Matthew. (August 1, 2016). "The Killers Announce ''Sam's Town'' Reissue, 10th Anniversary Party".
  4. Toney, Jordan. (October 7, 2016). "The Killers release previously unheard 'Sam's Town'-era demo, "Peace of Mind"". [[Alternative Press (music magazine).
  5. McLean, Craig. (September 24, 2006). "Songs of praise". The Guardian.
  6. Appleford, Steve. (October 3, 2016). "The Killers Celebrate 10 Years of 'Sam's Town' With Wild Casino Getaway".
  7. Appleford, Steve. (October 3, 2016). "The Killers Celebrate 10 Years of 'Sam's Town' With Wild Casino Getaway".
  8. Allen, Jeremy. (October 5, 2006). "Sam's Town: The Killers".
  9. "The Killers – When You Were Young [Universal]". AngryApe.
  10. (September 25, 2006). "The Killers: Dressed to Kill". [[Giant (magazine).
  11. Scaggs, Austin. (November 30, 2006). "Q&A".
  12. Fleming, Amy. (September 3, 2017). "The Killers' Brandon Flowers on New Music, Being a Man and Calling His Hero". [[Newsweek]].
  13. Miller, Jeff. (2006-10-08). "The Killers".
  14. "Reviews for Sam's Town by The Killers".
  15. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Sam's Town – The Killers".
  16. Hawthorne, Marc. (October 4, 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town". [[The A.V. Club]].
  17. Eells, Josh. (October 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town".
  18. Rosen, Jody. (October 2, 2006). "Sam's Town".
  19. Salmon, Chris. (September 29, 2006). "The Killers, Sam's Town". The Guardian.
  20. Murison, Krissi. (September 29, 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town". [[NME]].
  21. Mitchum, Rob. (October 5, 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town".
  22. (October 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town".
  23. Sheffield, Rob. (September 21, 2006). "Sam's Town".
  24. Lim, Dennis. (October 2006). "It's Showtime!".
  25. Martin, Dan. (September 17, 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town". [[The Observer]].
  26. Michel, Sia. (October 2, 2006). "The Killers: Sam's Town". [[The New York Times]].
  27. Lapatine, Scott. (September 26, 2006). "Rolling Stone Pans Sam's Town".
  28. Manning, Craig. (2016). "The Killers' 'Sam's Town' and The Hold Steady's 'Boys and Girls in America,' 10 Years Later".
  29. (December 14, 2012). "Readers' Rock List: Most Underrated Album of the Decade".
  30. "Q Artists And Albums Of The 21st Century".
  31. Hyden, Steven. (September 28, 2016). "Saluting The Killers' Misunderstood Sorta-Classic 'Sam's Town' On Its 10th Anniversary".
  32. Montgomery, James. (October 2, 2012). "The Killers' ''Sam's Town'', Six Years Later: An American Masquerade". [[MTV News]].
  33. (January 2010). "Albums of the century".
  34. Hasty, Katie. (October 11, 2006). "Evanescence Zooms By Killers To Take No. 1".
  35. Jones, Alan. (September 24, 2012). "Official Charts Analysis: Gangnam Style sales increase 445%". [[Music Week]].
  36. Hodak, Brittany. (August 31, 2016). "The Killers Celebrate 'Sam's Town' Anniversary With Vegas Extravaganza, Vinyl Reissue". [[Forbes]].
  37. (January 26, 2023). "Technoblade's father shares last message from late YouTuber, streaming community left in tears".
  38. Galloway, Ryan. (November 8, 2020). "XQC says he plans to purchase rights to his outro music to avoid DMCA".
  39. (2006). "Sam's Town". [[Island Records]].
  40. (October 21, 2006). "Hits of the World".
  41. link. [[IFPI Greece]]. (November 5–11, 2006)
  42. link. [[Oricon]]
  43. "Top 100 Album 2006". [[Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas]].
  44. "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Albums 2006". [[Australian Recording Industry Association]].
  45. (2006). "Year End Charts – European Top 100 Albums".
  46. "Annual Chart — Year 2006 Top 50 Ξένων Αλμπουμ". [[IFPI Greece]].
  47. "Best of 2006 – Albums". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  48. "Top Selling Albums of 2006". [[Recorded Music NZ]].
  49. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2006". Official Charts Company.
  50. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2006".
  51. "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2006".
  52. "Top 50 Global Best Selling Albums for 2006". [[International Federation of the Phonographic Industry]].
  53. "ARIA Top 100 Albums for 2007". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  54. (2007). "Year End Charts – European Top 100 Albums".
  55. "Top Selling Albums of 2007". Recorded Music NZ.
  56. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2007". Official Charts Company.
  57. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2007".
  58. "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2007".
  59. "2008 UK Year-End Charts". [[UKChartsPlus]].
  60. "2009 UK Year-End Charts". UKChartsPlus.
  61. (January 30, 2010). "The Noughties' Official UK Albums Chart Top 100".
  62. "Discos de Oro y Platino". [[Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers]].
  63. Copsey, Rob. (August 21, 2020). "The Killers' biggest albums on the Official UK Chart". [[Official Charts Company]].
  64. Peters, Mitchell. (July 23, 2008). "UMG Merch Arm Inks Deal With The Killers".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

2006-albumsalbums-produced-by-alan-moulderalbums-produced-by-flood-(producer)brit-award-for-international-album2000s-concept-albumsisland-records-albumsthe-killers-albumsvertigo-records-albums